The Passions of Comfort
by astrosyr
Summary: 2 years after Rory graduates Yale she's living in Washington working for the Post. She's got a steady boyfriend, good friends and as always her mom never more than a phonecall away. But is that enough to keep her happy and will she be able to resist temptations when old friends from the past reappear?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: First ever Gilmore Girls fanfic. Always been a big fan of the show and never satisfied with the ending. This story takes off 2 years into the future with Rory living in Washington working as a political reporter. She's got a steady boyfriend and some nice friends, her life's pretty good. But is she really happy and what will happen when old faces reappear?

Not 100% sure where I'm taking this but will include both Logan and Jess, my two favourites that I can't decide between, so have not decided who will have the upper hand and end up with Rory.

One minorly drastic AU change, Lorelai and Christopher stayed married. Always believed he was the right man for her and Luke and Lorelai were better off as friends.

* * *

The sound from the bustling city carries easily into the otherwise quiet apartment. The only sound coming from the inside is that of fingers tapping on a keyboard as Rory types away. She's rushing to finish an article about the new bill proposed in the House of Representatives today. She'd been covering the House for a year now after impressing the political editor at the Washington Post on her year touring with Obama's campaign. It wasn't quite the New York Times but it was a steady writing job at a top newspaper. She glanced over at the clock hanging on the wall as she sent the piece off to her editor. A quarter to twelve. She shut her laptop closed, leaned back in her chair and looked around her apartment. It was a small, one bedroom apartment on the fifth floor of a rather worn down walk-up in one of the more worn down inner city areas. The interior of the apartment matched the outside, it had only the essentials and the only personal items were a few picture frames here and there along with, of course, Rory's books. Her grandparents had offered to buy her a much more glamourous apartment in a better neighbourhood, or to turn this one into a 'liveable' state, but Rory had refused. She wanted to build her life on her own merit. To keep them happy she had let the Gilmores buy her a state of the art laptop and some shelves for all her books. She stroked her hand over the shut laptop and sighed as she stood up and went to bed.

The next morning Rory woke up to her phone ringing. Her mother was on the other end.

"I've got 5 legs" Lorelai exclaimed as soon as Rory picked up the phone.

"Huh?"

"Legs. 5 legs. I have 5 legs. In my dream last night I had 5 legs and I need you to help me figure out what it means"

"Oh Jesus, get dad to do it, or even better, your other daughter. It's her turn now to deal with your craziness"

"My other daughter's not grasped the art of dream interpreting yet, we're just about stepping into mommy's spontaneous whims. Oh and the talking bit, she's not got that down just yet. And your dad's still sleeping, Babette got his claws on him when we came back from Friday Night Dinner last night and made him help her with their new TV and man was she holding on tight, I had to go and get him after a few hours. Poor thing still has trouble getting away from Babette sometimes. I thought I'd let him sleep in peace"

"But instead you woke me up at 6am!" Rory spat out.

"Okay Miss Cranky-pants, what's wrong?"

"Sorry mom, I'm just tired, the House's sessions have been running late all week and then I've got to rush the articles in. Last night was the first time I've been done before midnight and since today's Saturday I wanted to sleep in and.."

"Whoa, sweetie, calm down. Sounds to me like you need a bit of a break. How about you come up to Stars Hollow for the weekend? We'll pull out the big guns and have an old fashioned movie night?"

"That sounds great mum but I can't, I'm meeting Pete's parents over dinner tonight"

"WHAT?! You're meeting the parents? Why didn't you tell me? That's huge news!"

"Well if you'd let me finish my earlier rant I was coming to that next. I'm meeting his parents tonight. They're in town for Pete's birthday and he thought it was time I met them. And of course I've been working late all week so I couldn't go shop for anything nice to wear and my hair is a mess and they'll think I'm some trashy slacker."

"Kid, calm down. If his parents think you're a slacker they're idiots because no one can spend more than 5 minutes with you without realizing you're the most dedicated worker there is. Now, go back to sleep for a few hours, then get an emergency hair appointment, wear your blue dress that we got last month and you'll look fine, okay?"

"Yeah, alright. Thanks mom"

"Anytime kid."

Rory hung up the phone and went back to sleep. She woke up at noon and she saw she'd never get a hair appointment on this short notice on a Saturday so she decided to ring up her friend Sam. Sam had joined the Post a couple weeks before Rory had and they'd bonded over both being new and soon became good friends. Sam had worked a few years working for Cosmopolitan magazine before moving to Washington and she was all knowing when it came to hair, beauty, boys and fashion. Rory felt no shame in exploiting her friend's skills and demanded she'd come over and fix the state that was her hair.

"Are you eternally in my debt or what?" Sam said as she barged through the door, arms full with bags and holding coffees and baked goods in her hands. She was a year younger than Rory, a few inches taller, had long blonde hair and a gorgeous body.

"Figured you hadn't eaten breakfast yet" she continued as she put down the food on the kitchen table and got rid of her bags onto the couch.

"Oh I am in your debt forever" Rory said as she rummaged through the bag full of Danishes and doughnuts.

Sam laughed at her friend and picked up her cup of coffee. "So where shall I start?"

The two girls gossiped and laughed as the blonde worked on her friend's hair. They hadn't seen each other much the last couple of weeks with Rory so busy in the Capitol and Sam had gone back home to Louisiana for the previous weekend for her sister's wedding.

"And the whole weekend was ruined because now all anyone will remember about Savannah's wedding is how uncle Bobby got drunk and smooched Earl the fishmonger" Both girls laughed as Sam finished her account of the wedding.

"How about you, did you do any smooching?" Rory asked with a cheeky grin. Sam was single and taking every advantage of it, which proved very easy with her looks and southern charm. Rory couldn't remember a Monday that didn't start with stories of Sam's romantic escapades the previous weekend.

"It's only tradition that the maid of honor get with the best man" the blonde answered giggling. "There. I think I'm done" she added as she handed Rory a mirror to get a better look at the back of her head.

"It looks great, I love it. Thanks Sam" Rory said as she stroked her fingers through her newly cut and blown out hair.

"Anytime hon. Now, unless you want me to do your make up I gotta bolt, got my own date to prepare for"

"Ooh, anyone I've heard of?"

"The veterinarian. Tonight might be the night" Sam said sneakily as she got her things ready to leave.

"Well call me tomorrow with all the details"

"You too, good luck" the blonde called as she headed down the hallway.

Rory shut her door after her friend had disappeared down the stairs. She turned her music on and headed back into the bathroom to start putting her face on.

Rory straightened the skirt of her dress for the umpteenth time as she stood in front of the full size mirror on her closet waiting for the cab to arrive. She was focusing her nervousness on fidgeting with her outfit even though she knew she looked fine. Her hair was as-if-casually flowing down to her shoulders, she was wearing the dark blue dress she'd gotten with her mom on their last shopping trip, it was a flowy V-neck that suited her perfectly. She'd opted for going light on the jewellery, small gems in her ears and a delicate silver tennis bracelet on her wrist. She brought her hand up and twisted the bracelet around. She hadn't worn it for over 2 years. It was the bracelet Logan had given her for Valentine's Day that year they went to the Vineyard. She didn't let herself think about Logan too much and it still felt wrong to wear the things he'd given her, but she'd looked at the bracelet, laying there in her jewellery box unused, untouched and thought to herself it's time. She's about to go and meet Pete's parents. It's time to forget all about Logan and put him in the past. It's of no use to anyone to keep these things as mementos of him, might as well start using them and then they won't be hold these strong memories anymore. She was brought out of her thoughts by her phone beeping to let her know her cab was there. She took one last look in the mirror, grabbed her shawl and purse and headed out the door.

* * *

Hope you guys liked it. Know it's a bit dry, but need to set the scene a little bit. Will not promise to deliver chapters at any certain time schedule nor that I'll always make them this long, but I will try not to keep to long between them.


	2. Chapter 2

Rory arrived at the restaurant at the perfect time. She'd carefully orchestrated it so that Pete and his parents would arrive before her, have some time to sit down, peruse the surroundings and briefly start looking at the menu before she interrupted at the exact right moment. Pete stood up and gave her a quick peck on the lips as a greeting before turning round and introducing her to her parents.

Dr and Mrs. Wood were exactly as Rory had pictured them. The perfect upper middle class, middle aged couple. The hair on Rodger's head was more grey than dark and his mustache was neatly trimmed. Martha was wearing a peach coloured suit and a pearl necklace and her hair perfectly tied back in an elegant knot. Pete himself was looking dapper in black slacks and a dark blue shirt with his dark hair combed and gelled back.

After the proper introductions had been made Rory sat down and opened her menu.

"Everything here looks so good" she said to start off the small talk.

"Oh yeah, this has become one of our favourite places to eat when we come into town" Mrs. Wood said.

"Do you come into town often?" Rory asked

"We've tried to come for a visit every two months or so since Peter started Georgetown, what about 6 years ago it must be now. Of course now it's been a bit longer over the summer with him home more" the older woman said smiling endearingly over at her son.

"Though he's not been home as much this summer as previous ones for some reason" Rodger said in a teasing voice.

Rory just blushed and Pete scolded his father who just giggled with his wife. Rory felt a bit ridiculous to be blushing at such an innocently teasing comment at the age of 24.

The waiter arrived and saved either one from replying. They ordered the food and the rest of the dinner went by quickly. Rory was used to courteous small talk after all her Friday Night Dinners and other events with her grandparents and she made good impressions on adults and Dr and Mrs. Wood were no different. They were delighted to see their son had finally got himself a girl that had some interests other than shopping and sunbathing.

"I think they like you more than me" Pete said laughing as he shut the door of his parent's cab and turned to face Rory.

"No, I was a blabbering idiot" Rory said with a concerned look on her face.

"Rory, stop it. They loved you" Pete reassured her, walking up to her and cupping her face in his hands as he leaned down and kissed her.

He took her hand in his and they walked off towards Pete's apartment.

Rory was lying awake in bed. Pete was snoring next to her, his arm lying over her stomach. She turned her head to look at his face. He was a handsome guy and she liked him a lot, loved him even, but there was something missing. She didn't know what, well, the truth was she wouldn't accept to herself what it was. It was all too boring, too mundane. She didn't like to feel this way, Pete was a perfect guy. He was sweet and caring, he was working hard towards a good job, had nice friends and his parents were lovely. He was the type of guy Rory should be thrilled about finding to settle down with. But she wasn't. There was no passion in their relationship. When they'd got in from dinner they'd sat down on the couch for a while and watched a movie before going to bed. It was all very ritual-like, like it was all nights. They'd get ready for bed, brush their teeth, she'd take off her make up, and then they'd get into bed and have sex. He was on top, always, and she laid there while he'd finish. She enjoyed it, it was nice enough sex, but it was always the same way and it had been a while since it had fully satisfied her. She shook her head and mentally scolded herself for thinking this way. She loved Pete and he loved her. That was that. No good would come from wishing for something new, and especially not from longing for what had been. That would never be again.

Rory was sitting at her desk looking over this week's plan for the House when Sam came over and saved her from planning another week of boring debates. She liked her job enough, she had a steady writing job after all, but that, like so much else in her life lately, was getting too mundane and boring.

"My God, did I just have the best weekend of sex ever or what" Sam exclaimed as she sat down on the corner of Rory's desk.

"The vet?" Rory asked laughing at her friend.

"Yeah. That man knows what he's doin'. Dinner was great, then we went back to his, I thought it'd be very civilized and behaved, after all, he's a very formal guy and we've been on like 6-7 dates and he's barely ever hinted sex, but man was I wrong. He ripped, and I mean actually ripped, my dress of and had me there on his living room floor. And then again in his bed, and again in the mornin', in the shower, in the kitchen after breakfast and to come full circle again in the living room, but on the couch that time. I'm spent."

"I'm not surprised, god, how are you even walking?" Rory said, still laughing, but deep inside had a tiny sting of jealousy she tried to suppress.

"It's not easy my friend. Think I might be in some trouble, that guy might manage to tie me down" Sam sad with a face pretending to be sad and concerned but she couldn't stop her eyes glistening and her mouth changing to a grin.

"What, no more of the different guy for each day of the week crap?" Rory asked teasing.

"It's the end of an era" the blonde stated solemnly before both burst out laughing.

"But main reason for me comin' over, apart from gloatin' over all the amazing sex of course, was to invite you and Pete to come out with us tonight. We're going to grab a few drinks at that new bar on 5th and you guys must come with" she continued and stared at Rory as to make her point that the other girl had to agree.

"Yeah, sounds good, I'll see if Pete's up for it" Rory answered and the blonde let out a tiny shriek of joy before jumping off Rory's desk and skipping back down to her own desk.

Rory laughed to herself at her friend and dug up her cell, texting Pete to see if he was free that night. The phone buzzed just a couple minutes later – 'Sorry babe, I've got study group all night, but I was thinking we could hang out tomorrow night?' Pete was starting his final year of Georgetown Law School and was already busy studying even though classes didn't start for another two weeks. She replied that she had a deadline the next day so she probably couldn't see him and then turned back to the computer screen.

Rory walked out of the Capitol exhausted, this day had been nothing but one politician after another arguing back and forth on some unimportant issue. She couldn't wait to go out and have a couple of drinks. She grabbed some Chinese takeout on her way home and when she got in she slammed into the couch, eating the food straight out of the containers while flickering through channels trying to find something good to watch for a couple hours before she had to get ready.

The bar was packed even if it was a Monday night. Rory had to stand on top of the landing to spot her friends before descending down the stairs and onto the bar floor. She had to push through a few people to get to where Sam and her veterinarian sat at the bar making love eyes at each other. 'Oh, great' Rory thought, 'I'm going to be a third wheel' but pushed that thought to the back of her mind as she put on a big smile and greeted her friend.

"Rory, nice to meet you again" the vet said as he shook Rory's hand. Yeah he was very formal alright. Rory found it a bit disturbing to think how he transformed into some sexual animal but she just laughed at herself and accepted it as a thing she had to know as part of being friends with Sam.

She ordered a drink and they talked for a bit before some of Sam's friends that Rory had met a few times came to join them and the night flew by in good company.

When the clock was nearing midnight Rory excused herself and turned to leave, it was a Monday night after all and she had work in the morning. As she made her way through the crowd she bumped into a dark haired guy who was standing with a group of friends. She made no notice of it and kept on walking but then heard a very familiar voice call out her name from behind her.


	3. Chapter 3

A hand grabbed Rory's arm and turned her around.

"Rory?!" Jess asked again.

"Oh my God, Jess, what are you doing here?" Rory exclaimed as she took a better look at her ex-boyfriend.

He had aged well, clearly keeping in shape as by his muscles filling out his neat dark blue shirt and his black hair still stylishly messy, but held that way with a visibly less amount of hair product.

"I'm living in Washington over the summer to help Liz out" Jess said and grinned at Rory after fully taking her in. She'd not changed a whole lot since he saw her last, that time when she came to see him in Philadelphia. He could still see a tint of unhappiness behind her smile and hoped he wasn't still with that Yale jerk.

"Is Liz not living in Stars Hollow anymore?" Rory asked surprised, she would've thought her mother would tell her that sort of news.

"She is, she and T.J. had an argument and she ran away. I'm working with T.J. to get her back home, she thinks I'm here to help her settle in and keep her company in the big city" Jess said laughing a little.

"How very undercover of you"

"A regular James Bond" Jess said in the same cool, sarcastic voice he'd had when he was younger.

He didn't need to ask Rory why she was in the city, he knew she had been living here for a year working for the Post. Luke kept him updated, he and Lorelai where finally getting back to the friendship they had before it all got so messy. But Lorelai clearly didn't do the same as Rory had no idea what he'd been up to, so he felt like asking would be the normal thing to do.

There was a sting in Rory's gut as she heard Jess's old self shine through in that comment. Just like she'd remembered him. It brought back all the pain he'd caused her, being cool and never giving anything away. And he didn't seem to have changed, not saying anything, just standing there looking at her.

"Jess, I'm so sorry but I've got to head home, long day tomorrow. It was great running into you and since you're staying in the city we should grab a cup of coffee sometime and catch up, here's my card, give me a ring sometime."

She rashly put the card in his hand before turning around and heading off, rushing through the door before anyone could see the tear slowly sliding down her cheek.

Rory had not written down a single note. She'd been sitting in the House for 10 hours and she had no idea what was going on. Her mind hadn't stopped racing since last night. Jess was living in Washington. And had been for the last two months. Her mom had to know about this, she and Luke where finally back on good terms. But her mom had always been wary of the Jess topic to her, and she'd never hidden her feelings about him so Luke might not have told her at all. But he'd surely have told her about Liz running away.

Rory sighed and leaned back in her chair, earning a few annoyed glances from her fellow reporters sitting around her listening intensely to a blonde woman making a heated speech and scribbling down notes frantically. Rory looked at them all, so eager and clearly enjoying every frantic minute and felt a wave of jealousy. The first days in the House that had been Rory, eager and thrilled to be working, to be in the frontlines. The novelty off it all had soon worn off. She enjoyed politics as much as the next person but this wasn't what she wanted, to sit in the House day after day, month after month, taking notes on speeches about legislatures and laws. She'd already missed out the whole day, no point in hanging around for the last hour or two, so she shut her untouched notebook, shoved it in her back, stood up and left.

Rory was roaming the streets of Washington aimlessly. The more she thought about it the more furious she became with her mother. Luke had most certainly told her and she was keeping it from her. She wanted to ring her and yell at her but she didn't want to hear her reasoning and apologies. And why hadn't Jess called her? She'd given him her card, with her cell number. She'd told him to call. It was just like him. He could've let her go last night without calling out to her if he didn't want anything to do with her. Why call out to her just to then stand there and say nothing. It was so like the old Jess. He hadn't changed one bit. But he had. He'd matured. He'd grown out of his boyish bad boy charm into a typical tall, dark and handsome type. No. She couldn't think of him that way, she shouldn't. She was in a relationship. With Pete. And she loved Pete, didn't she?

She glanced at her watch, it was only half past 8. She took her phone out and dialled.

Jess was staring at his phone like he had been for the whole day. Just pick it up and call her. It's just a cup of coffee. What harm could it do? But he knows it's not just a cup of coffee. It's Rory. His Rory. The love of his life. He'd never gotten over her. He'd tried moving on but it was no good. No one was good enough. After a couple years he'd given up on girls all together, apart from a night here and there, a guy has needs after all. His friends all made fun of him, called him the tortured artist. It was true in a way, he'd written two new novels, both selling out in a few weeks. He'd been approached by a few publishers but never signed with anyone. It's not what he wanted. He was still running Truncheon Books, living in the tiny space above it with Chris, Matt had moved out last year but was still involved in the running. He liked his live, it was good and better than he could have wished for. But it got lonely sometimes.

He heard keys in the lock and his mother entered the apartment with some guy in tow that looked like she'd picked him up off the street.

"Jeez kid, just ring her already or forget about her" she said laughing and then pushed the guy into her bedroom.

Jess shook his head and stood up to leave. He had no intention to stay and listen to his mother's mid-life crisis and his failure to fix it.

"Rory?" a surprised Pete answered the phone. "I thought you had to work late"

"Not anymore. Let's do something crazy. Let's take a road trip. Just pack a bag and drive to wherever the roads take us"

"What? Rory, you're hyped up, what happened?"

"Nothing happened. I just need to get away for a couple days. Come with me, we need a vacation"

"No, Rory, I can't. I need to study. I can't just pack up and leave. Where would we stay? Go home and relax, we'll talk about a vacation when you're not this hyped up and we can plan it"

"I don't want to plan it, I want to be impulsive, just go and play it by heart"

"We can be impulsive but sensible, look Rory I'm in the middle of studying these really complex immigration laws, I can't keep up with your whims right now"

"Fine, whatever. Talk to you later then" Rory snorted into the phone and hung up before Pete could rush out his 'I love you' goodbye.

She looked around the street she was on and realised she didn't really know where she was. It was a residential street somewhere in the north of town she thought, but she didn't really care at the moment. She decided to head off in the direction that she thought was centre of town to find an open bar.

Before she could even start walking again a dark headed figure came out of one of the buildings, slamming the front door behind him. She'd called out to him before she could stop and think what she was doing.

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys! Unfortunately it's not Logan just yet, but don't you worry, he'll make an appearance soon. In the mean time I hope you keep on enjoying, reading and reviewing :)


	4. Chapter 4

Jess was very surprised to turn around and see it was Rory that called out to him in the middle of the street.

"Rory?! What are you doing here?" he asked as she ran over to him.

"I don't know. I walked out of the House in the middle of a speech. I'm gonna get fired. What was I thinking? Oh god, I'm going to get fired"

Rory suddenly started panicking and slammed down to the steps in front of Jess's building. She had walked out on her job. She was in deep trouble.

"Wait, slow down, what happened?" Jess asked as he sat down beside her. She was clearly freaking out.

"I'm a reporter for the Post, I cover the House of Representatives. But today I couldn't focus, I wasn't listening to anyone the entire day and then I just walked out. In the middle of a speech. From the representative of Alaska. And I like Alaska. She makes me coffee. And I have a deadline tonight. I should be at the office, typing away. The paper will go out tomorrow without the Capitol Column. Jerry will be furious. He'll fire me"

"He won't fire you after missing one deadline. Now, there is nothing you can do about it now, just forget about it and go into work tomorrow and apologize. But you need a drink before you go home to calm yourself down. Come on, I know about this great little place near here" Jess said as he stood up and offered Rory his hand.

"You're right" she agreed as she took his hand. The damage was done, she'd face the music in the morning.

"Where are we going, why can't we just go inside?" she asked and looked at the tall grey building.

"Oh, Liz is indisposed" Jess said with a grimace and started walking.

"What? I thought you were supposed to be bringing her home? What about T.J and Doula?"

"I can't just go out and say 'stop it, let's go home'. She needs to figure it out and want it herself. I'm working on it. It's not going as well as I wanted"

"You don't say. Remind me never to let you safe me from impending doom"

"Hey, at least I'm here"

"Yeah, you get a couple points for that" Rory said laughing.

Jess felt a tingle as he heard Rory laugh. It was such a natural sound. Rory should always be happy and laughing, not miserable as she clearly was now.

They reached the little pub and walked in. It was a small but cosy place, the type of place you'd pop into after work for a relaxing beer and catch up on the neighbourhood gossip. Jess pointed out a booth for Rory to go claim while he went to the bar.

After a couple more beers Rory was starting to feel more than a little bit tipsy and Jess decided it was time to head home.

"Common, let's get you home" he said as he dragged her out of the booth.

"No. I'm not done talking. We're catching up" she slurred out as she tried to fight him, but Jess was stronger and managed to drag her to her feet.

"We've talked about every little detail of our lives since we last saw each other, including each meal you had at every Friday Night Dinner" Jess said laughing as he watched Rory try to stand up straight. It was not going well.

"Stop laughing at me and help me" she snorted at him while trying to point a finger at him.

Jess obeyed and with his help they managed to get out of the bar and onto the street.

"Which way is home?" Jess asked and then they stumbled along in the direction she pointed.

Despite Rory's drunken state they managed to make it to Rory's door. It was over a half an hour walk but no cabs went by so they walked it, and the walk did Rory good, sobered her up a bit so that she still felt she had some of her senses when they reached the door.

"Want to come in for a cup of coffee?"

The question in itself is innocent enough but Rory felt her motives weren't innocent. They'd spent the night catching up and falling into old rhythms. She was reminded of why she'd liked him so much, they had so much in common and they understood each other. And she didn't want it to end. She didn't want to go inside to her empty apartment only to have to wake up tomorrow and most likely get fired. She wanted to hold on to this moment, how everything seemed to fit right where it belonged.

Jess's mind was racing a hundred miles per hour. He couldn't deny that a part of him had hoped him walking Rory home would lead to this, but now that the offer was there he didn't know what to say. They both knew it wasn't just a cup of coffee she was offering, and god did he want to accept. But what was to come off it? They'd not discussed anything to do with relationships or anything in that direction. He had no idea if she was involved or not. He wouldn't call Rory the cheating kind but if she was still with the jerk he couldn't blame her. But he didn't want to be just some tool to use in her revenge. But he knew he'd hate himself forever if he at least didn't explore the option.

"Sure, coffee would be good" he said and felt his mouth drying up.

Rory opened the door and led him up the five flights of stairs that led to her apartment.

"Jeez, how far up are we going?" Jess complained about half way through.

"Oh, shush, we're nearly there" Rory waved a hand at him in dismissal.

When they finally reached the top floor Rory unlocked the door to her apartment and disappeared. Jess stood still outside for a couple moments before taking a deep breath and entering the apartment.

"I've not got any milk, so you'll have to take your coffee black" Rory's voice said from behind the fridge door.

"That's fine" Jess said back as he looked around the very modest apartment. He was standing in what functioned as the living room area looking into the kitchen nook with two doors on his right that most likely led to the bedroom and bathroom.

"Can I use your bathroom?" he asked as he noticed that there were very few pictures around, and of the few there were they were all of either her mom, Lane, Lane's twins or her grandparents. Nothing that gave away if she was involved with anyone.

"The door closer to you" Rory called out as she put the kettle on.

Jess disappeared into the bathroom and when he came out Rory was pouring the coffee into cups. She carried them over to the sofa and Jess walked over to her and sat down as she handed him a cup. When she did their fingers touched for a brief moment and Jess felt a jolt run through his body.

Rory felt something too when they touched. She felt tingly all over just looking at Jess in her dimly lit apartment.

They both took sips of their coffees and then placed their cups on the coffee table in total silence.

Jess couldn't handle the tension anymore. The way the light from the street light outside the window cast shadows over her face, the way her hair fell forward to her face whenever she leaned her head down, the way the fabric of her blouse stretched out over her breasts. He couldn't hold back any more so he leaned forward, putting one hand in her hair and pressing his lips to hers.

Rory responded to the kiss straight away, kissing him back and putting her hands on his body.

The kiss quickly heated up and Rory laid back on the sofa, pulling Jess down to her by the neck of his T-shirt. He let her drag his head down to kiss her and then lifted himself up again to admire her. She noticed him taking her in with his eyes and started buttoning down her blouse, revealing a red lace bra. Jess swallowed a gulp as he looked at her. He'd not pegged Rory for wearing such daring underwear, and indeed it was the only piece she owned, but something had made her wear it today.

Jess leaned down and started kissing her again, moving from the lips, down the neck to her breasts then making his way down, while his hands worked on removing Rory's pants. She gasped as he reached his destination.

Rory awoke to her alarm buzzing loud. She found herself completely naked lying in her bed next to a also naked Jess, who remained fast asleep until he felt Rory move next to him. He opened his eyes to see her tying up a white silk rope around her.

"Good morning" he said as he raised himself up on his elbows.

"God, Jess, I'm so sorry. I never should have let last night happen" she said franticly as she looked for her clothes, coming up empty handed, remembering they were still in the living room. It had not been on their mind to pick them up when moving to the bedroom.

"Hey, what have you got to be sorry for, it's not like you forced me to do anything" Jess said, trying to hide his pain of seeing how distraught she was at what had happened.

"No, Jess, you don't understand, I've got a boyfriend"

Jess felt like he'd been punched in the gut by reality.


	5. Chapter 5

"What do you mean you have a boyfriend?" Jess asked when he'd found his voice again.

"I mean, that I'm in a relationship Jess. I've been seeing this guy called Pete for four months, I just met his parents and we're in a very exclusive relationship. Except I just slept with you so I'm guessing he's not going to be too happy with me" Rory babbled out while rummaging through her closet finding clothes to wear to work.

"And at no point last night it occurred to you to mention this to me?" Jess said angrily, getting out of bed and walking into the living room to find his clothes.

"Well, lately I've been feeling a bit restless and I don't know if I want to be with Pete for the rest of my life" she started rambling as she followed him into the living room with her arms full of clothes.

"God, Rory. I can't keep being your go to guy for making whichever jackass you're dating at the time jealous or when you feel unsatisfied. Go buy a vibrator or something" he shouted as he stormed out and slammed the door shut behind him.

Rory let herself fall onto the sofa and couldn't help but let a few tears loose as she realized Jess was right. She couldn't keep on treating him like that.

"Sam I need to talk to you" Rory said in a hushed voice as she approached her friend's cubicle. She needed to talk to her and get her advice on the situation and wanted to do it before she'd inevitably be called into Jerry's office.

"What's wrong? Where were you last night? Jerry was fuming" Sam said as she followed her friend into the ladies room.

Rory checked underneath all the cubicles to see if anyone was in there and when the coast was clear Sam blockaded the door.

"Right, now spill!" Sam said with a serious look on her face.

"You remember how I told you about Jess, my ex from Stars Hollow that wrote a book? Yeah, well, I ran into him in the bar on Monday and then again yesterday and ended up sleeping with him" Rory spat out and then stared at her friend, waiting for her response.

It wasn't often that the cheery blonde was rendered speechless, but now she was.

"I know. It's stupid, what was I thinking? What about Pete? Well, I was feeling frustrated with my life so I rang Pete and asked him to go away with me for a couple of days on a spontaneous trip. He said he couldn't go, I got mad, hung up the phone and suddenly Jess was coming out of a house right on the street where I was so I called out to him"

"And that led to sex?" Sam asked judgingly.

"Well, no. We went to a bar, had a few too many drinks, he walked me back to my apartment and I asked him up for coffee. I know it was stupid but Sam, I feel like I'm drowning. I don't know why I'm feeling this way, I've got everything I ever wanted, a steady writing job, a nice apartment and a perfect boyfriend.. but I'm not happy"

"Oh, honey, come here" Sam said and pulled Rory in for a hug. "We all feel stuck sometimes, but that does not allow you to go sleeping with other people"

"I know. I was stupid. I hurt Jess and I hurt Pete. And on top of everything I missed an important deadline and will probably get fired" Rory could feel the tears forming in her eyes. She'd really screwed up this time.

"Listen, Jerry will probably not fire you, it's your first mistake. About the other thing. You should never tell Pete, telling him will only result in bad things. And about Jess, from what you've told me he mistreated you plenty so he had some of it coming. Now pull your face together, get those Bambi eyes ready and go suck up to Jerry"

"Yeah, okay" Rory agreed and touched her face up before the two headed out of the bathroom.

The clock in the office struck midnight when Rory finally walked out that night. Jerry had been fuming at her, but she'd not faced any punishment other than having to hand her full-page feature in for tomorrow's paper instead of this morning's. She'd gotten back to her desk, turned off her phone and not moved from her seat from fear of giving Jerry any cause at changing his mind and actually firing her. So now she was absolutely starving, as she'd only eaten a small sandwich Sam had brought her 6 hours ago, and aimed straight at the pizza place across the street that was open well into the night.

On her way there she turned on her phone and she had 10 missed calls and as many voicemails. She sighed as she dialled and started listening to the messages. The first seven where from her mother, then one from Pete and another two from her mother. She sighed again as she took her takeaway pizza and dialled the phone again.

A groggy voice picked up the phone. "Rory? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, Pete, everything's fine. I'm sorry I'm calling so late. Do you have plans this weekend? I'm going up to Stars Hollow to go visit my mom if you want to come with me?"

A/N: This took a while because I've been a bit uninspired lately and really don't like this chapter, but it's a way to move the story on and things will hopefully pick up again from now


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Finally gotten back into a place were I can start writing again, hoping to get back into this story. Thanks to everyone that has reviewed the story in the past, hope you still enjoy the story

"Emma, Paul Anka's eating your breakfast, hurry up and get it" Lorelai shouted from the kitchen and the little girl came running in. The little dark hair she had stood out in all directions and her pink pyjamas already had a big tomato sauce stain.

"No, bad Paul Anka" she said as she started climbing into the chair currently occupied by the dog.

"Paul Anka can eat my food, eggs make you fat" an older girl sitting across the table said as she frowned into her plate.

"Gigi, eggs don't make you fat. Broccoli and beans do" Lorelai said as she put some bacon slices on her step-daughters plate.

"Don't listen to her Gigi, she lies" Christopher said laughingly as he came in and leaned down to kiss the top of his younger daughter's head.

"How are my girls this morning?" he asked as he got himself a plate, piled it with eggs and bacon and sat down at the table.

"Paul Anka eat breakfast" Emma said as the dog sharing her chair sniffed her bacon while she poked and played with her eggs.

"Well he's hungry sweetie. He was howling all night" Lorelai said with a hint of annoyance, looking at Chris. "If your daddy let him sleep inside like a normal dog he'd be happy and full"

"Not this again Lor, we talked about this, you baby coddle that dog too much"

"He needs his mommy Chris" Lorelai said in her baby voice as she bent down to cuddle the dog, only to have him jump over her as he ran outside. Gigi and Emma burst out laughing as Lorelai fell back on the floor and sat there with a sad face.

"See what you've done Chris, he doesn't love me anymore" Lorelai said as she crossed her arms on her chest, turning away from Chris's outreached hand.

"That's what happens when they grow up Lor, they move on" Chris said, trying his best to remain serious at the sight of his wife sitting on the floor so much like their daughter just half an hour before when he'd told her she couldn't bring her teddy with her to day care.

Then the doorbell rang and Lorelai was forced to stand up to chase after her daughter running to get the door.

"Rory!" Lorelai screamed out as she saw her first born standing in the doorway.

"Mom!" Rory screamed out in reply and ran in the door to hug her mother.

"Did you say Rory?" Chris said curiously as he walked out of the kitchen with Gigi not far behind.

"Hi Dad, hi Gigi" Rory greeted her father and half-sister with hugs as well.

"Rory, what are you doing here? And who's that handsome fella standing awkwardly in my doorway waiting for you to introduce us to him?" Lorelai said, looking at poor Pete, taking enjoyment in not easing his awkwardness.

"Oh sorry, mom, dad, this is Pete. Pete, these are my parents, Lorelai and Christopher, and my sisters, Gigi and Emma" Rory said blushing.

"Nice to meet you Mr & Mrs Hayden" Pete said as he came in and shook their hands.

"Oh, no need for that, just call me Cher" Lorelai said.

"Mom!" Rory moaned at her mother's antics.

"Jeez, can't anyone have any fun around here. Sorry, Pete, clearly you can just call me Lorelai"

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Lorelai" he said, thinking the woman was just as Rory had described her.

"Kiddo, you still haven't told us why you're here?" Chris asked as the group made their way into the kitchen.

"Yeah, kid, we need time to prepare, give Luke a chance to stock up on coffee, make sure the right films are available at the video store, etc.." Lorelai rambled

"I just fancied a bit of a break from the big city life, got to keep my small roots alive" Rory managed, trying not to let on how much she needed to get away from Washington.

"Well, it's lovely to have you back. You guys must be starving, you must've driven all through the night to get here this early, sit down, have some breakfast" Christopher gestured to the food on the table.

"Oh yes, I could eat a horse" Rory said as she sat down, resulting in laughter from her baby sister.

Christopher and Pete engaged in courteous small talk over breakfast with occasional remarks from Rory or Lorelai and soon all the plates were empty. Chris had to excuse himself to go to work, taking Gigi and Emma with him to drop them off at their respective school and day care.

"So, what's the plan for today, kid? Giving Pete the grand tour of Stars Hollow?" Lorelai asked as she stacked the empty plates next to the sink. Christopher had insisted they start eating off proper plates so he had to deal with the cleaning up.

"The Grand Tour? Sounds majestic" Pete joked and gave Rory a grin.

"It's really only a five minute walk. The town is tiny" Rory said. "But, first, mum, we'd love to get a few hours' nap, we really have driven through the night" she continued.

"Oh, of course. Sorry hun, but we have no room for you in the house anymore. If it was just you, you could crash on the sofa but it's a bit small for the two of you and Gigi has your old room. I'll check at the inn, I think we should have a room available" Lorelai said, perusing the Dragonfly's registry in her mind, she'd need to try and give them the best room available. She had a feeling Pete was the type of guy that was used to nice hotel rooms rather than quaint inns.

"We don't want to be of any trouble, I'm sure there is a hotel with rooms available in Hartford" Pete said, polite as ever.

"Absolutely not. You came to see Stars Hollow and in Stars Hollow you will stay. You might however have to go to Hartford tonight. It is Friday after all and the Gilmore's wont be happy if they hear you were in the area and didn't come to dinner" Lorelai said, immediately regretting it when she saw the horrified look that crept on to Rory's face.

"Oh, the infamous Friday Night Dinners. I look forward to witnessing one" Pete said as he got up and asked for directions to the bathroom to freshen up.

"What's up, kid?" Lorelai asked in a hushed tone after Pete had left the room.

"I've got to tell you something, but you won't be happy with me" Rory admitted.

"Okay. Is this a conversation for now or do we need more privacy" Lorelai asked cautiously, her stern motherly side starting to show.

"Later" Rory quickly answered as she heard Pete's footsteps coming back down the stairs.

"Right, Pete, are you ready to see the best inn in a hundred mile radius?" Lorelai asked cheerfully walking out of the kitchen towards Pete and beckoning out the door.


	7. Chapter 7

Lorelai managed to squeeze Rory and Pete in one of the bigger rooms, much to Michel's annoyance, even though he did seem overly pleased to see Rory again. They got settled into the room and as soon as Pete dozed off Rory sneaked out to see her mother. She walked straight into the kitchen, knowing where her mother was likely to be, and was greeted by a high shriek and giant bear hug from Sookie.

"Oh, Rory, your mom was just telling me that you're back. I'm so glad to see you. I'll make you something special for lunch. Your mom said you brought your boyfriend with you, said he seems like a nice guy, what's his favourite thing to eat? Does he like pork? Such nice meat pork but not everyone appreciates it. I've got some lovely loins in the back, could make it with some nice roast potatoes and herbs…" Sookie drifted off into her thoughts about ways to serve the pork loins and barely heard Rory's answer agreeing to the pork.

"She's completely lost in thoughts about pigs with apples in their mouth, lets go to Luke's and talk" Lorelai said and turned Rory out of the kitchen again.

When the pair walked through the door at Luke's, he was no where to be seen, but they were greeted by an ecstatic Lane instead.

"Oh my God, Rory! You're here!" the little Korean woman shouted and ran over to her friend jumping and screaming like they were still teenagers.

When the two stopped jumping Rory had a better look at her friend and noticed her belly.

"Lane! You're pregnant again! Why didn't you tell me?" Rory asked. Even though they now lived far apart the two still spoke often.

"Yeah, I didn't want to tell anyone but suppose I can't hide it anymore" Lane said shyly, stroking her growing belly.

"Honey, we've all known for weeks" Lorelai said laughingly. "I just assumed you had told Rory already"

"I guess that means you tried sex with Zach again?" Rory jokingly teased her friend, remembering their conversation from when Lane had gotten back from her honeymoon complaining about the horrible sex vowing never to do it again.

"Yeah, turns out when you're not stuck in a horrible vacation in the sucky part of Mexico, it's not that bad" Lane laughed as she went behind the counter to pour the two women some coffee.

"Where's Luke?" Lorelai asked as it was clear the man was not in the building.

"He's gone to New Mexico for the weekend. Some big thing at April's school. Surprised he didn't tell you, you guys are friends again now" Lane answered as she put some doughnuts on plates before getting out her notepad to take the Gilmore Girls' actual orders

"Oh yeah we are, just haven't seen him in a while I suppose" Lorelai mused. "I'll have a burger and fries, please Lane"

"Make that two please. And some cherry pie please" Rory added.

"It's a good thing really that Luke's not here" Rory continued as Lane went to give the order to Caesar. "I wouldn't want to say what I need to with him hearing"

"Dear God, kid, what have you done?" Lorelai asked, concern starting to creep over her.

"Well, like I said earlier, you're not going to like this. It all started on Monday night when I bumped into Jess" Rory started. She saw the guilt and anger swoop over Lorelai when she mentioned Jess.

"Yeah, thanks for the heads up he was in D.C. by the way" Rory continued, giving her mother a dirty look.

"I wasn't sure if I should tell you. It's a big city, he could have left without you ever seeing him" Lorelai said, her manner genuine.

"Well, I did. And to make a long story short, I slept with him the next day" Rory blurted out.

Lorelai just sat there staring at her.

"What?! Please, Rory, please God let me have heard you wrong"

Rory just shook her head, looking at the floor.

"And you think you can just blurt this out in the middle of Luke's over some burgers? What is wrong with you Rory? What were you thinking?" Lorelai kept hammering into Rory, the way only she could do when her daughter had done something wrong.

"I wasn't. I wasn't thinking at all. I was miserable, I'd ditched my newspaper deadline, I was feeling lost and unhappy and I got drunk and it just happened" Rory started to tear up as she could see the clear disappointment all over her mother.

"Does Pete know?" Lorelai asked, voice blank.

"No" Rory said, stirring her coffee, avoiding any eye contact.

"Are you breaking up with him?" Lorelai asked again, in a straight matter-of-fact manner.

"I don't know" Rory answered, continuing to stir her coffee.

"Why did you bring him here Rory? To meet me and your dad, everyone in the town, your grandparents, if you're not even sure you're staying with him. After you cheated on him"

"I don't know"

"Are you going to tell him? He deserves to know. He clearly likes you a lot Rory, driving through the night to come meet your family, after you just met his parents"

"I don't know"

"Well you need to figure out what you're doing and you need to do it fast. You are of course still welcome in our house and your grandparents will expect you to join us for dinner tonight but I am not lying to the boy for you Rory" Lorelai said as she stood up and left, apologizing to Lane on the way out that she couldn't stay for her burger.

Rory just sat there, stirring her coffee.


	8. Chapter 8

When Rory returned to the Dragonfly Pete was awake, sitting at the desk provided, studying.

"I was almost starting to get worried" he said when she entered the room.

"Sorry, couldn't sleep so went to catch up with my mom and ran into some friends" Rory said as she sat down on the bed.

"No need to apologize, I just would have appreciated a note. I had to sit and eat lunch all by myself. The chef was nice enough, a bit overbearing, insisting I tried everything and ate all the food, even your portions"

"Oh, shit. I forgot about Sookie's lunch. I'm so sorry Pete" Rory said, walking over to him and taking his hands.

"It's okay" Pete said, squeezing her hands lightly before getting out of her grip and turning back to his book.

"We still have a few hours before we have to get ready for my grandparents'. Want to go for a walk and I can show you the town?" Rory asked

"I'd rather continue reading now I've gotten into it. We have the whole day tomorrow to explore" Pete said, barely lifting his head from the book.

"Okay" Rory simply said as she turned away, laid on the bed with some notes on a story she was working on and started scribbling down some things.

Rory and Pete made their way over to the house before heading over to the grandparents. Inside there was a war going on. Emma had drawn all over Gigi's dress and now the older girl was refusing to go as she had nothing else to wear.

"Gigi, I swear to God, if you don't get dressed right now I will take your phone away for a week!" Lorelai threatened as the pair walked through the front door.

"No. Please, I have to have my phone, I'll go get dressed straight away" Gigi pleaded as she rushed into her room.

"Now I was never this bad. At least you didn't have to threaten me" Rory joked as she and Pete entered the living room.

"No. But sometimes I came close" Lorelai said as she started to tidy up the living room after the warzone.

The Gilmore mansion had not changed. Rory hadn't been there for dinner since beginning of summer and was therefore a bit nervous as to how her grandparents would react to Pete. Before she had time to worry too much about it the maid of the week opened the door. This one was a particularly spirited one and rushed them all through to the sitting parlour in record time.

"Rory, we're so delighted you could join us. It's been far to long" Emily stated as she grabbed her granddaughter in a hug.

"Hi, grandma" Rory said as she returned her grandmother's hug.

"And this must be Pete. Nice to meet you" Emily stuck out a hand for Pete to shake before turning to greet the rest of the family. "Richard, they're here" she shouted upstairs as she went to make drinks and the others sat down.

"Ah, wonderful, hello everybody" Richard exclaimed as he came down the stairs.

After Rory had introduced her grandfather to Pete he went straight into the interrogation, asking about law school, his intentions for the future, etc., while the rest stayed relatively quiet until the maid announced dinner was served.

The dinner went unusually well. The Gilmore's were well behaved and Pete was well equipped to answer all their questions to their satisfaction. The only big upset was when Emma spat her foie gras back out of her mouth resulting in a row between Lorelai and Emily, the older claiming Lorelai needed to teach her daughter manners and the younger protesting that the poor child was only one years old and could not be expected to eat duck liver without protests. It quickly settled down and by the time dessert was served everyone was happy.

As they were saying goodbye, Pete's phone rang and he excused himself to answer it.

"Such a lovely gentleman. You've done well for yourself, Rory" Emily said when he was out of earshot.

"Yes, exemplary young man. Could have done better than Georgetown Law School of course, but we'll let it slide" Richard echoed.

Rory just blushed and agreed with them, then Pete returned, his face pale.

"What's wrong?" Rory asked straight away.

"It's my father. He's in the hospital. I'm so sorry to rush out on you but I must go see him immediately"

"Oh dear, yes of course you must head out straight away" Emily said as she grabbed his coat from the maid and handed it to him, gesturing him towards the door.

"I'm coming with you" Rory stated and quickly kissed her parents goodbye before rushing out after Pete.


	9. Chapter 9

The pair barely spoke until they were sat down in the waiting lounge at Bradley Airport. Rory wanted to be of use, but she could hardly get a word out of Pete. She'd gathered his father had suffered some form of heart attack and his mother didn't know anything. So now all they could do was to wait for the next flight to Denver.

5 hours later they rushed through the doors of St. Joseph Hospital. They made their way to the cardiac unit where they found Mrs Wood sitting by herself in the waiting room.

"Oh, Pete" was all she could manage before bursting into tears.

He rushed over to his mother and grabbed her, holding her tight until she stopped crying.

Rory awkwardly walked over and sat down next to Pete. When Mrs Wood calmed down again she thanked Rory for coming, and then they all just sat there, quietly waiting for any news.

Sat in the waiting room, Rory had a lot of time to think. She thought back to her mother's reaction to her cheating and how angry she'd been at her. She knew she'd done a horrible thing but her mother didn't understand. Sam had judged her for what she'd done, but she'd understood. Her mother just got angry. Her mother had insisted she tell Pete, while Sam had said nothing good will come of it. Well, she couldn't very well go around telling him now, not with his father in the hospital suffering a heart attack. No, she decided there was no way she could tell him now, that would just be inhumane. So she pushed the thoughts out of her head and focused on trying to do anything she could to help Pete and his mother.

After what seemed like infinite amount of hours, a doctor finally appeared.

"Evelyn, Peter, nice to see you. Sorry it is under these dire circumstances" the doctor said as he approached. "I'm sorry to say that I've not got good news".

Rory could see Pete's grip of his mother's hand tighten and she could feel a lump in her throat.

"Stewart's injuries are more serious than we thought. Several of his coronary arteries are blocked and we could not remove all of the blood clots. We did manage to relieve some of the build up and his vitals are low, but stable at the moment. We must operate again as soon as possible to try and clear the rest, but for now he is to fragile to continue so he's resting and we'll check his status again tonight".

"So, is he awake?" Mrs Wood asked frantically.

"Yes, for the moment he is and you can go in to see him" the doctor said and took them to Dr Wood's room.

When she saw Dr Wood lying in that hospital bed tied to numerous tubes, Rory thought back to the time she had seen her grandfather lying in a similar position and her heart clenched. She silently reached out to Pete's hand, grasping it tight to show him she was there, supporting him.

"Oh, Stewart" Mrs Wood gasped as she rushed over to her husband's side, carefully hugging him before starting to fuss about his bed, making sure he was comfortable.

"Evelyn, please. I am perfectly comfortable. Sit down" Dr Wood said calmly, gesturing his wife towards the chair next to his bed, where she reluctantly sat down and took his hand in both of his.

"How are you feeling, dad?" Pete asked, standing at the foot of his bed with Rory by his side, holding his hand.

"I've been better. A bit silly of me really to let this happen, I'll never live it down around here" he joked, but was clearly in a bit of pain.

Dr Wood was a cardiology specialist at St. Joseph's and knew very well that there was a chance he wouldn't make it back to work to receive the jokes he insinuated.

"Oh, shush. They know you're the best in this city, no one will dare to tease you" Mrs Wood said encouragingly, probably trying to reassure herself more than her husband.

After a while the doctor came in and told them Dr Wood needed his rest so Rory and Pete left the room, but Mrs Wood was allowed to stay with her husband.

When they got back to the waiting room the sun was shining bright through the window.

"We should try and get some rest" Pete said. "You didn't even nap in Stars Hollow so you've been up for almost 48 hours".

"I'm fine, really. I'm here for whatever you or your parents need" Rory said, but her face gave her away. Bags had started to appear under her eyes and she had to contain a yawn.

"There's nothing we can do now, dad's resting so we can too. We'll head back to my parent's house, get some sleep and then we can bring dad some fresh clothes and books to get through the days" Pete said and the two made their way out of the hospital.

The Woods lived in a picture perfect suburban house with a swing on the porch and a white fence. The garden was neatly kept and a glistening clean SUV in the driveway. The inside was just as clean and neat, the whole house was a credit to Mrs Wood and her perfect housekeeping skills. Donna Reed immediately popped into Rory's head, she would have been proud of a house like this. She quickly stopped grinning at the thought and followed Pete into his old room. The room bore little remark that it had once housed a young boy. It had been refurnished into a model guest room, double bed with rose patterned bedding, a spacious dresser, couple of bed side tables and a full size mirror were the only furniture in the room and on the walls were two paintings, one a landscape and the other a copy of van Gogh's Sunflowers.

"What a lovely little room" Rory said as she tried to imagine her mother doing something like that to her room. Although it had been completely changed as Gigi needed a room of her own in the house, it had taken a lot of convincing on both Christopher and Rory's sides to concede the room to Gigi, Lorelai had wanted to keep it to Rory's liking forever so she would always have a place in her home. It was hard for Rory to imagine a mother that wouldn't feel that way.

"It really is, isn't it?" Pete replied, completely oblivious to Rory's thoughts. "Mother thought it best to make it a more presentable, all around guestroom rather than keep it as a hormonal teenager's den".

"But what about all your stuff?" Rory asked.

"The stuff worth keeping that I didn't take with me to D.C. is stored away in the attic. They're of no better use displayed in here, collecting dust"

Rory just nodded, still not completely agreeing with the concept but no use starting a row over such trivial things.

As they had been in a rush getting to Denver, they had not returned to Stars Hollow to get their things from the Dragonfly before heading to the airport so Rory had no spare clothes, and what would have been left of Pete's was stored away in some boxes so he went off to find them something to wear.

When he returned he was wearing some really nice silk pyjamas Rory assumed were his father's and he held out something for Rory. She accepted the garment and found out to her horror it was a night gown, pale pink with yellow and red roses printed all over it. She repressed all her comments and quickly undressed before pulling the gown over her head. It reached all the way to her calves. As she slipped under the covers she noticed that the gown matched the bedding.

"Rory, I need a distraction, I need to not think about my father for a while" Pete said quietly.

Rory didn't say anything, just accepted his kiss as he climbed on top of her. She noticed his pants were already pulled down and his manhood fully erect.

"I took a pill from the bathroom earlier" he said as he slid a condom on. Even though Rory was on the pill he refused to have sex without a condom.

Rory continued to stay silent as Pete pushed the night gown up and pulled down her panties. He leaned down and kissed Rory again as he guided his penis to her opening. She was in no way ready for him, but the lubricated condom eased his passage in to her. Rory laid there as Pete thrust his hips again and again, faking the right noises at the right time until he came. He pulled out, removed his condom and put it in a bin that stood in the corner, and pulled up his bottoms while Rory went to the bathroom.

When she returned, Pete was falling asleep. She slid in next to him and he turned on his side, put one arm across Rory's stomach, pulled her closer to him and placed a kiss on her head before whispering "I love you, Rory".


	10. Chapter 10

When Pete's alarm went off it took Rory a few moments to remember where she was. Then she remembered her horrifying pink night gown and it all came back to her. Beside her Pete had sat up in bed, stretching.

"What time is it?" she groggily asked as she also made a move out of bed.

"2pm. We only got a couple hours but should be enough to see us through until tonight" Pete answered. "If you pop in the shower I will find you something to wear".

An hour later they returned to the hospital. Rory was wearing the same clothes from earlier. Nothing of Mrs Wood's had fitted her. They found her asleep in the chair next to Dr Wood's bed. They returned to the waiting room, not wanting to wake either of the two up.

Hours passed. Finally, an exhausted looking Mrs Wood appeared and took a seat next to them. T

"They've taken Stewart into surgery again, hoping to release the last of the blockage" she said as she sat down.

"It'll all be okay, mum" Pete said as he wrapped an arm around his mother, pulling her in closer.

The three of them continued sitting there in silence for what felt like eternity. Rory was in the middle of suppressing yet another yawn when the same doctor from the night before appeared.

"Miles, are there any news?" Mrs Wood said as she arose from her seat.

"Yes, this time I have good news. Stewart's surgery went really well, we were able to clear the rest of the blockage surrounding his heart with minimal complications"

Mrs Wood burst out crying and grabbed Pete in a bear hug.

"We'd like to continue keeping him in the hospital for at least a few more days while he recovers in case there are any further set backs, but at the moment things are looking good. If you'd like to go in and see him he should be waking up any minute" the doctor continued and the three followed him through to Dr Wood's room.

The next morning Pete dropped Rory off at the airport. She had to go back to work the next day and as Dr Wood was out of critical condition. Pete was sticking around for some time as he had no immediate commitments as school had not started yet. As she sat and waited to board the plane she contemplated the last week. How did everything become so screwed up? She knew how, of course. She'd slept with Jess. Cheated on her boyfriend. Why did she do that? She knew why. She didn't love Pete. Not really. These last few days had confirmed it. She cared for him a lot, and she didn't want to hurt him, but she did not love him. She needed to break up with him. Yes, it was the humane thing to do. But she couldn't do it over the phone, he deserved better. When he got back to Washington she'd do it.

When Rory landed at Ronald Reagan Airport she had a message off Sam on her voicemail. She was asking Rory to cover some society event for her that night. Apparently the vet had some romantic evening planned and Rory needed to get back on Jerry's good side so she reluctantly agreed to help her. She'd not gone to many high society events after she left Yale and she had not been in a rush to change that, but it would be a nice distraction for her life.

Rory's outfit choices were limited. She'd ditched ball gowns and elegance for jeans and comfort two years ago, but in the back of her closet she found a dress that would work. She had bought it on some crazy whim last year when she got an invitation to Juliet's wedding last winter. She hadn't gone in the end but she'd kept the dress. It was a floorlength V-neck with a deep, open back, made of dark glistening silk that stuck to her curves in the right places. She pinned her hair up with some diamond studded pins and put on a pair of hanging, silver earrings. The tennis bracelet was still laying on top of her jewellery box from last weekend and she decided to put it on again. She'd managed to wear it without even a glimpse of thought about Logan and it would suit this dress perfectly. Satisfied with her appearance Rory headed out the door.

It was opening night of L'Orfeo in the Kennedy Center and everyone who was anyone in the city was there. Rory flashed her press pass as she walked in and grabbed a glass of champagne from a nearby waiter. She really wasn't the right person for this job. Yes, she was the granddaughter of an upper class society couple and she could've covered this gig with flying colours in Hartford, but here? Here she was a low level politics reporter that barely ever read the society pages, let alone knew anyone of importance. She chugged back her champagne, grabbed another glass and then dove in to the nearest group of people. She would get through this and she would produce a first class article about it.

When the first bell chimed, warning people that the show would be starting soon, Rory was talking to a software developer she'd already forgotten the name of.

"Looks like the show's starting, I better go find my seat" Rory started to excuse herself, relieved to get away from the indescribably boring man.

"No, wait, here comes my partner in crime I've been telling you about" he said eager as he turned Rory around to face the young man that had appeared to his side.

"Rory Gilmore, meet Logan Huntzberger"

"Rory, nice to see you" Logan said as he raised his hand to greet her.

"Yeah, nice to see you too" Rory said hesitantly as she shook his hand.

"Wait, you two know each other?" the software developer asked, confused.

"Yes, we used to date in college" Logan said.

"Oh, how lovely. Things must have ended amicably I see" he continued, oblivious to the tension between the two.

"Yes, very amicably. Now, if you'll excuse me, the show is starting" Rory said as she hurried off to her seat.

Rory had to fight her hardest not to think about what had just happened. She had a job to do and she would get it done, for herself and for Sam. She could not let her friend down. So, she pushed all thoughts off Logan and that weird greeting out of her head and focused on the opera in front of her.

She had been wearing his bracelet. Logan had seen the small diamond band on her arm when she'd shook his hand. It may have been two years since he'd last seen the piece but Logan was an expert when it came to those things. That was the tennis bracelet he'd given her two and a half years ago on Valentine's. But what did it mean? As he sat there, in the most expensive box in the house with what many call the best opera ever written going on beneath him all he could do was stare at her profile sitting there in the press box in the opposite end of the room. He'd never gotten over Rory. He never would. She was the girl that had made him see what it's like to commit to one person. She'd taught him to love, to care for that one person more than anything. He'd made a massive error in judgment when he proposed that way and an even bigger one in giving her the ultimatum.

"I love this scene" a female voice whispered in his ear, tearing him away from his thoughts.

"Yeah, it's great" he whispered back in his girlfriend's ear.


	11. Chapter 11

**Thanks for the reviews, glad to see people haven't completely given up on me despite lack of updating :)**

Rory made sure she didn't run into Logan again during intermission. She busied herself discussing the opera with a number of socialites. After the show she stayed for the appropriate amount of time before bolting back to her apartment. When she got in she finished off the article before she allowed her mind to start to wander. What was Logan doing there? What was he doing in D.C? The software guy had introduced him as his partner. Was he living on the east coast now? Or was it a long distance partnership? All the thinking would never give her answers to those questions. She would never know. Logan was a thing from her past. With that thought resolute in her mind she went to bed.

"Thank you so much for covering last night, I owe you big time" Sam said as she dropped a hot cup of coffee on Rory's desk.

"No problem, happy to do it" Rory answered as she eagerly grabbed the cup and took that wonderful first sip. "Any gory details to spill?"

"Well, I am now officially off the market. The vet and I are officially a couple"

Rory nearly spat out her coffee. "I never thought I'd see the day. God bless the vet" she said laughing.

Sam gave her the evil eyes but before she could snort back a comment the two girls were interrupted by a man's voice.

"Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt"

Rory recognized his smooth voice anywhere. Sure enough, Logan Huntzberger was stood next to Sam, looking down on her in her chair. What the hell was he doing here?

"It's nothin', we were just chattin'. I'm Samantha Pritchett" Sam said and reached out a hand.

"Logan Huntzberger, lovely to meet you"

"Pleasure is all mine". You wouldn't know she just announced she had a boyfriend by the way Sam smiled at Logan, Rory thought. Then she scolded herself. Logan was an attractive guy, Sam was an easy going girl, of course she'd put on a bit of charm. Rory needed to stop this ridiculous jealousy.

"Logan, what are you doing here? How did you know I worked here?" Rory asked, trying her best to sound casual.

"I came here for an interview actually, Adam Finman is doing a profile on the new app we're developing. I was just passing through when I saw you and thought it would be rude not to say hi"

Of course he hadn't come to see her. Rory felt so stupid.

"You're makin' an app? How fascinatin'!" Sam exclaimed, easing the tension.

"Yes, a buddy of mine owns a software development company and I'm helping him with the financial side of things" Logan said, directing his attention back to Sam.

"Mr Huntzberger, there you are. Not disturbing my interviewee are we, ladies?" Mr Finman said as he approached. He was a short, bald and foul smelling man that Rory had always detested, but he could write a good tech article.

"I've always been partial to a nice conversation with pretty ladies" Logan said smiling his signature smirk and Rory thought she could see Sam's knees buckle.

"Rory, I'd love to catch up before I head back west, are you free tonight?" For the first time since he'd walked up to Rory's cubicle, Logan's attention was on her.

"Yeah, sure" Rory said before she could think of a reason not to go.

"Great, I'll give you a call later" Logan said quickly before disappearing after Finman.

"That's your ex?" Sam exclaimed when he was out of earshot.

"Yep"

"He is hot!"

"Yep" Rory continued with the short answers.

"Are you really goin' to see him tonight?" Sam asked, a hint of worry in her tone

"I can't back out now, it'll look as if I can't face him" Rory was starting to panic.

"Of course not. But how are you goin' to tell Pete?"

"Huh?"

"Pete. You know, your boyfriend. Won't he want to see you tonight?"

"Oh, he's in Denver, his dad had a heart attack". Rory was so lost in her thoughts she didn't realize what a bomb she'd dropped.

"What?" Sam exclaimed.

"He's fine, but Pete wanted to stay with his parents as he recovered since school doesn't start for another week" Rory quickly explained.

"That might be a bigger problem" Sam said, sounding worried.

"What?" Rory asked, worried.

"Well, sorry to bring this up, but you already cheated on him once, and though I haven't seen this Jess in person, Mr Huntzberger over there surely beats his looks. You'd have to have the loins of steel to resist this much hotness and charm"

Rory couldn't help but laugh. Her friend was being deadly serious.

"Sam, I'll be fine. I won't sleep with Logan. I swear" Rory reassured her.

After a few minutes Sam wandered off to her own cubicle and Rory's mind couldn't help but wander back to how good Logan had looked.

"He's bringing his girlfriend"

"What?" A confused Sam answered the phone.

"Logan. He's bringing his girlfriend to our little catchup" Rory said on the other end of the line.

"Well, we know you won't sleep with him then" Sam said, still getting her head around the situation.

"Sam, focus. I said I'd bring my boyfriend along too" Rory said snappily, not in the mood for fooling around.

"But Pete's in Denver?" Sam was still a bit confused. She'd been napping when Rory called.

"I know that, but I panicked. I can't face him alone. Not when he's bringing a girlfriend" Rory was starting to get worked up.

"Calm down, just get someone to fake bein' your boyfriend"

"I don't need a fake boyfriend, I have a boyfriend"

"Who is on the other side of the country" Sam reminded Rory.

"Man, I really need a fake boyfriend don't I?"

"Yes, sweety, you do. I'd offer up the vet but he's off to New York on some vet conference" Sam said.

"What am I going to do? I don't know any guys well enough to let them fake being my boyfriend"

"I have a crazy idea, but you might not like it" Sam said hesitantly.

"Why did I let you talk me into this again?" Jess said as they stood outside the Italian restaurant Logan had chosen for the occasion.

"Because you don't really know anyone in this city and your mom's off meeting some new guy to shag"

Sam had been right, her idea was crazy, but it was Rory's only shot. She didn't really have a lot of friends in this city and definitely not a male one that she was comfortable enough with to ask to fake being her boyfriend so she wouldn't look pathetic in front of her ex.

She hadn't thought Jess would answer the phone, but he had and after a lot of apologizing on Rory's half, he'd hesitantly agreed.

"Okay, let's go over this again. You moved over here to expand your publishing business, we ran into each other one night and reunited over drinks"

"Not that different from the real story" Jess said, his voice bitter.

Rory just let the comment slide and opened the door.

His heart took a leap when he saw her walk through the door. Then it sunk right back down as he saw who followed her. That writer punk she'd dated in high school. Were they together? He'd only brought his girlfriend along to make sure he didn't do anything stupid. He had a chance to reconnect with Rory and he wasn't going to screw it up by acting too fast. But if she was seeing that punk he probably didn't stand a chance. He'd felt intimidated enough back when he'd showed up at her grandparent's that night, he could only imagine how out of reach she was now that they were together. Callie was saying something to him but he didn't hear her.

Rory noticed the pretty blonde lean over and say something to Logan as they approached the table but he appeared to ignore her as he stood up to greet them.

"Rory, hi" Logan said and gestured to the two seats opposite him and his girlfriend. "Please sit down"

"Thanks, you remember Jess" Rory said as she sat down.

Jess grunted something in acknowledgment. It was obvious how much the two disliked each other.

"This is my girlfriend Callie, Callie this is Rory and her boyfriend Jess" It pained him to say the word boyfriend. Looking at him, so self-righteous, made Logan's blood boil.

"Nice to meet you" Callie said, getting a response from Rory and another grunt off Jess.

Rory looked at him disapprovingly. She knew he was doing her a favour but at this rate it would've been less embarrassing to show up alone.

"So, Logan, with this new app being developed does that mean you're relocating?" Rory asked as she picked up a menu.

"No, with the technological advances I'm able to do most of the work from California. Obviously it would be better to be in the same time zones, but this one won't even discuss returning to the east coast" Logan said, gesturing with his head towards Callie.

"Returning? You're not a west coast local then?" Rory asked, intrigued. The blonde looked the epitome of a California Barbie, tanned skin, chemically enhanced lips and from the looks of it, breasts too.

"No, I'm born and bread in Boston. Moved out to Cali when I was sixteen to become an actress" she said and flipped her hair as she finished. Jess gave a small snort at the gesture. Rory didn't think Callie noticed but she still shot him a death glare.

"Oh, have I seen you in anything?"

"No, turns out acting wasn't for me, but I got a job in modelling and now I'm the face of Benefit make up" Callie said proudly.

Before Jess could come out with some retort about that, the waiter came to take their orders.

When the waiter left, Callie continued her conversation with Rory, asking her a question about journalism.

Jess observed the whole thing silently. He could tell from miles away that Logan still had feelings for Rory. His attention was all on the tiny brunette rather than his blonde bimbo girlfriend and he took in every word she said. Jess almost felt proud and protective, before he quickly reminded himself that he had no right to feel that way. He wasn't Rory's boyfriend. Her boyfriend was off attending to his sick father. He was the guy she'd cheated with. Her dirty little secret. It still hurt to think about. Since that moment he'd stormed out of her apartment he hadn't stopped thinking about if he'd ruined his chance of starting something with Rory again. When he'd seen her name on his phone screen that afternoon he hadn't believed his eyes. He was still mad at her for lying to him and not telling him about her boyfriend, but he couldn't refuse her. Especially not when she'd mentioned Logan's name. Whatever he could do to inflict misery upon that tool. Thankfully, it looked like all he had to do was be there and the annoying blonde looked like he wanted to hit him.

"What about you, Jess, what do you do?" Callie had apparently finished her questioning of Rory and turned her attentions to him.

"I work in publishing" Jess answered, not bothering to respond with a question. He hadn't gotten any better in the art of conversing.

"Oh, interesting. You write anything yourself" Callie wasn't going to be put down so easily. Out of the side of his eyes he could see Logan turning to face Rory and saying something to her.

"It's good to see you" Logan said to Rory, looking straight into her bright, blue eyes.

"You too". Rory couldn't help blushing a little at the way Logan's eyes pierced right into her soul.

"Finn lives in D.C. now, have you ran into him at all?" he said, trying to think of something to say to her. He was thankful he'd brought chaperones, god knows what he would've said or done had he been alone with Rory.

"Really? No, I've somehow missed him. I'd love to catch up with him, I think I need to get out more" she said and laughed timidly.

"I'll be sure to give him your number next time I see him" he said, his stomach flinching at the sound of her laughter.

"You trying to set Rory up with someone with her boyfriend sat across from you?" Callie asked appalled, having only caught the last bit of their conversation after giving up on interrogating Jess.

"No, I'm saying I'll get her in contact with Finn again" Logan said as he leaned towards Callie and placed a kiss on her cheek.

Rory noticed the small gesture and her stomach tightened. Such a small little thing, but filled with love and adoration. Logan looked really happy, she noted.

The waiter arrived with their food and they all happily dug in, taking a break from the pleasantries.

The rest of the dinner went amicably, they chatted about anything and everything and soon it was over. They said their goodbyes and watched Logan and Callie drive away in a cab.

"Thanks for doing this Jess" Rory said, feeling a bit awkward.

"Beats sitting at home witnessing Liz's midlife crisis" he said.

"No luck on your mission then?" Rory asked, easing the tension a bit.

"Not really, I might not be the best person for the job" Jess replied, unenthusiastically.

"Well, thanks anyway, I'll let you go now" Rory said, sensing Jess's tone and gesturing towards a cab.

"It's still early, maybe you could try knocking some sense into Liz?" Jess asked. He wasn't ready to let Rory go, not knowing if he'd have the chance of seeing her again.

"I'm kind of tired, maybe some other time" Rory said, smiling a little as to let Jess know she was telling the truth, she actually was just tired.

"Yeah, next time" Jess said, returning her smile with a half one as he closed the door of the cab behind Rory.


	12. Chapter 12

Rory woke up fully rested and turned her head to check the alarm clock. Five minutes to six. She'd zoned out the minute she got in the night before, tired from the hectic few days before.

She decided to get up and make herself some coffee. Might as well try and enjoy some time to herself since she was up.

As the machine was brewing she noticed her phone had a notification about some voicemails. She rang the number and listened.

"Hey Rory, it's Pete! Tried calling a few times, guess you're busy. Anyway, I'm coming home tomorrow for the dinner, dad's all better and getting released from the hospital so no excuse for me to miss it. I'll come pick you up at 6.30 tomorrow night, I miss you". Beep.

What dinner?! Rory had no idea what Pete was talking about. Clearly it was something they'd planned but she had been so preoccupied lately she had no idea what it was. Rory sighed. If this dinner was something important to Pete she couldn't very well break up with him tonight could she?

"Rory! Why don't you answer?! I just read your article on the opera last night. You saw Logan? Why didn't you tell me? How was it? Call me back as soon as you get this message"

Rory sighed again. It was two years since she'd graduated. The subject of Logan hadn't come up a lot. Her grandparents sometimes mentioned him or some of his family and whenever they did Lorelai immediately got an annoyed look on her face and looked at Rory with a worried look.

She decided to play a trick on her mother that had woken her up countless times and rang her, knowing full well that the elder Lorelai Gilmore would be fast asleep.

"Mommy's phone" Emma's darling voice answered.

"Hey Emma, it's Rory" Rory said back, wondering if her baby sister had ruined her plan of waking their mother up.

"Mommy sleep. Bye bye" The toddler had hung up on her. Rory couldn't help but laugh. This was undoubtedly something Lorelai had taught her to do so she could continue to sleep.

Rory dialed her mother's number again and this time it almost rang out before a groggy Lorelai answered. "Hello?"

"Mom, sorry, did I wake you?" Rory asked, knowing full well that she had and not feeling sorry at all.

"Yes. It's 6 in the morning. Why aren't you sleeping? Is something wrong?"

"No, I just went to sleep so early last night that I was up. I just got your voicemail and thought I'd tell you all about my evening in the opera. But if you'd rather go back to sleep I can just call back later"

"No, no, I'm up. Go" Rory heard her mum get up and ready to listen and then she told her all about the events of previous days.

When Rory finally hung up the phone it was so late that she had to rush out without managing a shower so she wouldn't be late for work.

At exactly 6:30pm Rory's doorbell rang. She pressed the buzzer without even checking who it was, Pete was ridiculously punctual and there was no way it was anyone else. She left her door unlocked and went back into the bathroom to tie her hair up. She had rushed in only minutes before six and it was a miracle she was even representable right now. She had found it a bit hard to figure out what she should wear as she had no clue what this dinner was that she forgot everything about, but being so stressed for time had meant she just put on the first thing she saw. She'd opted for a nice pair of black jeans, a rich red sweater and some nice heeled pumps to dress the look up a bit. Since she had no time to deal with her hair she rushed it in a bun, hoping to pull off the casual-but-still-put-together messy bun.

"Rory, the car's waiting. You ready?" Pete called as he entered her apartment.

"Yeah, just finishing my hair" she called back as she rushed out of the bathroom.

"This is what you're wearing? Rory, have I done anything to you? Do you want to humiliate me?" Pete asked as he saw her, struggling to keep his temper out of his voice. He was dressed in his finest suit, new dress shoes and his hair was neatly combed back. "The commencement dinner is one of the biggest events of the year and it's a great honor to be invited and you decide to show up in jeans? Seriously what have I done to you?"

"The what dinner? Pete, I have no idea where we're going" Rory said, getting a bit angry with how quick he was to anger.

"Georgetown Law School Commencement of the School Year Dinner for Alumni and Honor Students. It's this big get together with all the alumni and high ups in the law society and a great opportunity for me to try and get some internships and even job opportunities. I got the invite in the mail a month ago"

"Oh, yeah. That. Well you could've said something more than just "the dinner" in your voicemail, I had forgotten about this. I'll go change, I won't be a sec" Rory said and rushed back into her bedroom.

"I hate being late Rory, the event starts at seven" Pete called after her before going into the kitchen and pouring himself a glass of whiskey to calm his nerves.

"I'm sorry. I'll be really quick" Rory called out as she rushed out of her clothes. She maybe should have called up Pete to ask more about this dinner, but since it was such a big deal a heads up from him in case she'd forgotten would have been nice. They hadn't spoken since she'd gone off at the airport in Denver on Sunday.

Fortunately, her nicer dresses were still out from when she was deciding what to wear to the opera and she just picked up the other one and quickly got changed. This one was more modest, a burgundy pencil dress with capped sleeves and a low neckline that came down to just below her knees. She stuck with the black pumps and her updo, just grabbing a necklace and heading back out.

"Can you do my necklace please? Then I'm ready, if this is acceptable to your standards?" Rory said, trying to make it clear she was annoyed at his attitude but still being amicable and not starting an argument.

Pete took the necklace from her hands and clasped it together at the back of her neck. It was a small ruby pendant in a gold setting hanging from a gold chain. When Pete had fastened the necklace he turned Rory around to face him.

"You look beautiful" he said and placed a small peck on her lips. "Now, let's go. We should still make it if the driver steps on it"

Rory grabbed her black clutch bag and followed Pete out the door.

Pete had to pay the driver an extra ten dollars to speed a little bit, but they had made it just in time. Rory was thankful, as Pete was already starting to sweat from the stress of the drive. He was quite anxious in formal social situations like these, even though his parents were rich and he could have managed in society, he wasn't used to these kind of events. After all, he was more comfortable with high society in Denver, not the east coast.

When they entered they were welcomed by the dean of the law school, as it was his event.

"Dean Thomas, thank you so much for inviting us. It's a lovely gathering"

"Glad to have you Mr. Wood. And who's the lovely lady on your arm?" The dean turned his head towards Rory but was clearly asking Pete, as was proper decorum for him to make introductions. However, it quickly became apparent that that wasn't going to happen so Rory had to speak up for herself.

"Rory Gilmore, sir. Pleasure to meet you".

"The pleasure is all mine" the dean said as he shook Rory's hand. He was a tall, elegant man that had just started to gray. "Do you bear any relation to Richard Gilmore?"

"Yes, he's my grandfather"

"Wonderful. A good man he is"

"Well, I think so" Rory said smiling fondly.

"Hold on to that one, Wood, one's family speaks volumes of one's character"

"I intend to sir" Pete said, blushing. Rory swallowed a hard gulp.

They moved on into the party and Rory grabbed herself a glass of champagne from a tray moving past her.

She and Pete just stood there for a minute, gazing the crowd. Rory did not know a single soul there. She could see some vaguely familiar faces that she might have seen in passing around the House or at some of the few society events she'd attended with Sam. She'd only been seeing Pete since April and he wasn't that valued in the law community yet that he only got invited to a rare event associated with school.

When they'd been standing without saying a word for just under five minutes Rory was growing bored and her feet would surely start to hurt soon if she didn't move about a bit. Just as she was about to say something to Pete dean Thomas arrived in the entryway of the spacious room and clinked his glass to demand attention.

While the dean made his speech Rory let her eyes wander aimlessly around the room. She was only listening with one ear as this did not interest her very much, and as cold as it was she couldn't help but think that she really didn't have to memorize anything about these people as she doubted she'd ever see any of them again. As she tried to keep a yawn down she noticed a tall blonde sneak in through the front door. No, it can't be, Rory thought to herself, but sure enough, as he turned around Rory got a full look of Logan's face.

She quickly looked away, hoping Logan hadn't noticed her. Rory turned her attention back to the dean's speech. He was just finishing up, introducing servants with trays of food and encouraging people to spend at the bar as all proceeds went to the law school's student council. Yeah, as if Rory was spending her money to fund some rich kid's drinking trip to Cabo under the name of an educational field trip.

The crowd applauded and slowly dispersed as people began to mingle again. Pete wanted to venture about, seeing if he saw someone he could benefit from talking to, but as they were moving across the room someone stopped them in their tracks.

"Rory Gilmore. What are you doing here?!"

Rory turned around, not recognizing the female voice calling out her name. Who did she know that went to Georgetown other than Pete's friends? As she spotted the blonde walking over to them she wasn't any clearer as to why they were there.

"Honor? What are you doing here?" Rory asked in shock. Honor's presence here might explain why Logan was here too.

"Josh went to Georgetown. He's being accepted into some sort of high up alumni group or something, they're giving him some plaque later. Apparently it was important enough to drag us down here midweek" Honor said as she embraced Rory, Rory fully engaging in the welcome. She'd always liked Honor and regretted that the way things ended with Logan made it impossible for them to have any sort of contact.

"Oh, how very impressive. Congratula.." Rory stopped mid sentence as she realized Josh wasn't there. She was just so used to Josh following Honor around like a puppy that she'd assumed he was there behind her.

"He's off mingling, he's really in his element here. I see you are in good company" Honor said, sizing up Pete.

"Yeah, this is my boyfriend Pete. Pete, this is Honor Huntzberger"

"Nice to meet you" Pete said politely and shook Honor's hand.

"So, how have you been? Don't think I've seen you since all that horribleness with my brother"

"Yeah, uhm, I'm good. I work for the Post here in D.C. now. How are you?"

Honor started telling Rory all these things about what's going on in her life, the drama and gossip, motherhood as apparently her and Josh had a baby, and Rory fell into a comfortable chat.

Logan had walked the whole house twice without seeing his sister or Josh. He was just about to give up and leave when he spotted her, talking to some couple. He walked over, grabbing a glass of champagne on the way. He needed alcohol to get through this evening. He'd managed to avoid his father in his walks around looking for Honor, but he wouldn't be able to go the whole night without speaking to him. This was the first time in a year the whole family had got together and it really was a joyous occasion, Josh being honored, but he just knew he would not get away from this night without getting into an argument.

As he got closer to his sister he got a closer look of whom she was talking to and he was sure his eyes were deceiving him. There was no way that was Rory. That guy standing beside her was definitely sending out messages of possession, the way his body was stationed, and that was not the punk from Philly. When he was just a few steps away there was no denying it, that was Rory's voice.

"Logan, you made it" Honor exclaimed as she saw him and pulled him into a hug. "Where have you been? You were supposed to be here at half past six" she said scolding as she let him go.

"Sorry, got hold up in a meeting" he said as he pulled out of the hug. "Third night in a row, I'm beginning to think you're stalking me Ace" Logan said jokingly, turning his attention to Rory.

"It's you who keep turning up to where I am, not the other way around" Rory said, quick on her feet. His use of the nickname had stung.

"Who's this? Where is Jess?" Logan said, gesturing towards Pete.

"Pete Wood, Rory's boyfriend" Pete said and stuck a hand out. He might not be the best in high society situations but he knew how to mark his territory and make it known what was his.

"Logan Huntzberger, pleasure to meet you, Pete was it?" Logan shook his hand with a tight grip. This was not his first time in a power battle over a woman.

"Yes. Who's Jess?" Pete said, a hint of annoyance in his voice at Logan's play.

"Jess is an old friend of mine. We all met up for dinner last night" Rory said quickly, stepping in before the two went in a full on verbal fight. "Could I speak to you for a minute Logan?" Rory said, not waiting for a response but dragging Logan to the side.

"Ace, wouldn't have thought you'd go back to dating multiple people. As I remember it wasn't really your thing" Logan said as they reached the bar on the other side of the room. Pete was looking over to where they were with a stormy look on his face.

"I'm not. Pete was out of town last week and only came back today. I only got Jess to pretend to be my boyfriend last night so I wouldn't look like a fool, saying I'd bring a boyfriend and then turning up alone, looking like I'd made him up" Rory blurted out, blushing as she realized how crazy she sounded.

Logan couldn't help a chuckle. "You felt the need to lie to look good in front of me, I'm flattered Ace. Didn't think my opinion mattered to you anymore". He said it with a confident way about him like he always did but deep down he was jumping with joy. Rory wasn't with the punk but just some low life that stood no competition to him. And she felt the need to show up with someone, proofing to him she had a boyfriend.

"Whatever" she said dismissive, clearly annoyed at his smug act. "Just please don't mention anything about it to Pete. That would just open up a can of worms about the history with all of us and now is not a good time"

She pleaded with such eagerness in her eyes that Logan couldn't bear coming up with a smug remark, he just agreed.

"We almost thought you two had run off together" Honor joked as they returned to the conversation.

Rory laughed awkwardly but was clearly struggling to come up with an excuse for dragging Logan away. He couldn't think of anything either but they were saved as Mitchum and Shira walked up.

"Rory. What a pleasant surprise" Mitchum said as he offered out a hand.

"Mithcum, Shira, lovely to see you both. You must be so pleased for Josh" Rory said, shaking Mitchum's hand. She introduced Pete and then found a quick way to excuse them from the conversation.

Pete didn't say a word as they walked away from the Huntzberger's. When he was just about to ask something he spotted some professor that he needed to impress so he walked over to say hello, Rory following behind, saying nothing apart from when she was addressed.

Logan spent the rest of the evening either talking with Honor, tolerating his parents' presence or mingling with some rich lawyers his dad knew. He couldn't help but look over at Rory, observing her whenever he could. He let himself look at her for the first time since he'd arrived and she looked beautiful. Her dress was snug, showing off her great body. She was clearly staying in shape and if Logan didn't know any better he'd have guessed she'd had her breasts done as they stretched out the fabric so much Logan was afraid it was going to rip any second. The pendant around her neck just drew further attention to her bosom. Her hair was a mess on the top of her head but somehow it made her look even sexier, like she'd just come from a clandestine meeting in the cloakroom. Her cheeks were slightly red from blushing and her blue eyes glistened in the professionally lit room. Man, how he wished he could be the one showing her off on his arm. He wouldn't leave her be to just stand there on his side like a handbag, like Pete was doing. He'd show her off as his prize, making sure she was included and enjoyed her evening. It was obvious to everyone that she was miserable and that Pete was clearly annoyed at her.

Pete didn't say a word to Rory the whole car ride home. When the cab pulled up to the curb outside Rory's building she got out, not sure if he would follow, but he did. They walked up all the floors to her apartment in silence. It wasn't until Pete had shut the door behind them inside her apartment that he spoke.

"Rory, what the fuck was that? Who is this Jess guy as clearly there is more to it than what you said earlier? And why were you out with your ex boyfriend last night?" He didn't even try to keep his voice calm, he was pissed.

"I ran into Logan at the opera on Sunday. It was the first time I'd seen him since we broke up two years ago. Then he suggested we go for dinner to catch up and I didn't want to be rude so I agreed. He was bringing his girlfriend so I panicked and said I was bringing my boyfriend. But then I remembered you were in Denver so I asked my friend Jess…"

"You 'remembered' I was in Denver taking care of my dying father? I mean so little to you that you forget I exist when I'm not in your eyesight?" Pete spat out, getting angrier.

"No, Pete. I know you exist. I was just caught off guard and the logical response was to say I'd bring my boyfriend too" Rory pleaded. She was coming off terribly in this argument.

"And this Jess person, who is he?"

"An old friend of mine from Stars Hollow. He's Luke's nephew. You remember Luke from the diner?" Rory asked, hoping to bring up a nice memory of her showing him her town, showing she cared about him.

"No. I never made it to your tour before we had to leave for Denver" Pete said bitterly. Rory cursed herself inwardly for not remembering.

"Rory, do you still have feelings for Logan?" Pete asked, point blank, his voice completely void of emotions.

"What? That has nothing to do with this? He's just an old boyfriend that created this unfortunate situation. He's leaving for the west coast again soon and I'll never see him again" Rory said, evading the question.

"Rory. Answer me. Do you have feelings for him?" Again, his voice completely dead.

"He was my first adult relationship. I really loved him. I don't think those feelings ever completely go away. But that doesn't matter now, I'm with you and I love you. I haven't thought about Logan in two years" Rory said, pleading.

"How can I ever compete with that Rory? This epic love? I don't want to be living in his shadow for the rest of my life Rory"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying I don't think this is going to work"

Rory didn't reply and Pete simply turned his back and walked out of her apartment. She fell down on her couch crying. After a while she started wondering why she was so upset about this. She was going to break up with Pete anyway. Why had she fought him trying to get him to want her still? She should be kind of happy the relationship was over. At least now she wouldn't have to be the one breaking up with him.

 **It's been a while, I know. I want to thank all of you that still bother to keep up with my story even though I am the worst, updating a few chapters and then making you wait maybe months before updating again.. hopefully I will manage a few chapters with this spell of the muse and this time I'll keep them unpublished and only post once a week so that I have some consistency.**

 **Please rate &review as that is the thing that keeps us all writing! 3**


	13. Chapter 13

It had been a month since Jess had last seen Rory when he watched her drive away in the cab that night they had dinner with Logan and his girlfriend. He had thought about calling her so many times. He'd make a point of walking past her house when he was in the area, hoping he'd run into her. He'd even wrote her a few text messages before deleting them all.

He had no idea what to say to her. He never had been good at the whole communication thing, it had been what had ultimately caused their break up.

But he knew he had to say something. He could not keep on living like this. He either had to make an attempt of getting her in his life again or never think of her again. He couldn't continue this brooding artist thing, it was slowly killing him. He'd seen what it did to his uncle Luke and that had gotten him nothing.

Speak of the devil, his phone just rang and the frowning face of his darling uncle with his backwards baseball cap popped up on the screen.

"Luke, hey" Jess said as he answered the phone.

"Jess. How's it going" Luke asked.

"Fine"

"You need to get Liz into a car and get to Stars Hollow. Right now. T.J.'s sick of waiting around and I can't blame him. He's getting serious with another woman and if Liz doesn't get back now she'll lose him forever" Luke said flat out. He knew there was no use of dragging this out, the conversations with his nephew worked best that way.

"Okay. I'm just about giving up on trying to smooth her onto the right track anyway" Jess said simply.

"Great. See you soon" Luke said and hung up.

Jess sighed. He knew his mission in D.C. had failed, it had a while ago. He just hadn't been able to force himself to go yet.

Rory stood on the front step of her grandparent's house, unable to bring herself to knock. She'd decided to take the week off and go home to see her family and she knew her grandmother would never forgive her if she wouldn't make an appearance at her Friday Night Dinner.

The sound of a car pulling into the driveway made Rory turn around and see her mother jump out before the car had even come to a full stop.

"Loinfruit" the older Lorelai shouted as she grabbed Rory in a hug. "You afraid to go in?" she added when she let her daughter go.

"Yep" Rory simply said. "You haven't told them about..?"

"No, subject hasn't come up" Lorelai said, immediately knowing what her daughter was referring to.

"Rory" Emma shouted as she waddled over hand in hand with their dad.

"Hey little sister" Rory said as she bent down and picked her baby sister up into her arms. "You're getting so big"

"Emma one half" the toddler said.

"Yes, you are one and a half years old" Christopher said with a smile as he gave Rory a kiss on the cheek. "Hey, kiddo, nice to see you"

"Hey dad, good to see you to"

"Are we ever going to get in?" an exasperated Gigi said as she gestured to the door.

In the same moment a maid opened the door to reveal Emily Gilmore standing in the doorway.

"What's with all the commotion out here, were you ever going to ring the bell?" she asked, frustrated.

"Sorry Grandma, suppose it's my fault" Rory said as she went in to hug her grandmother, still carrying Emma.

"Rory, how wonderful, I didn't know you were joining us, come on in" she gestured them all inside. "Richard, they're here" she then proceeded to shout into the house.

The dinner went smoothly and they managed to squeeze in a standard junk food filled Gilmore film viewing before Rory passed out on the couch. Her mom had tried to get Gigi to give up Rory's old room but that idea had been quickly shut down by the headstrong young girl and Rory not wanting to impose.

She awoke the next morning to the beautiful smell of eggs and bacon cooking in the kitchen.

"I swear it will never feel familiar to wake up to the smell of food cooking in this house" Rory said as she made her way into the kitchen where her dad stood by the stove and Emma was sat in her chair playing with, rather than eating, some cereal.

"It makes for a nice change, doesn't it?" Chris said as he tossed some food on a plate for Rory.

"Very nice" she said smiling as she dug into the food.

"Are you sure you're alright, kiddo? We haven't had a chance to really talk since your breakup" Chris asked as he sat down at the table too, trying to get some of the food into Emma's mouth, rather than all over her and the floor.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just busying myself with work"

"Suppose that's the best thing you could do"

Frustration didn't even begin to cover how Jess was feeling. He'd drove all through the night to get Liz to Stars Hollow without her catching on to where they were going, as she was passed out in the back of his car. Then he'd arrived at the crack of dawn to her and T.J.'s house only to find that no one was home. He'd kicked out in anger, only to bang his toe on the porch railing. His cursing had woken Liz up, she'd been furious at him, screaming and shouting, waking up the neighbors who proceeded to tell them that the house was infected with mold and T.J. and Doula were staying at Luke's. After another heated argument with his mother he'd convinced her to go to Luke's as they were already in Stars Hollow and he wasn't leaving until she'd talked to T.J. When they'd gotten to Luke's, the first thing his mother had done was jump T.J. and proceed to very quickly make up with him. As he did not want to witness they're full reunion he'd rushed his little sister out of there and gone to help Luke set up. He finally got to crash out on Luke's old air mattress as the first customers were walking into the diner.

Now he had been woken up by the sound of some stupid festival going on in the town square. His toe was banging in pain and he'd only managed to sleep for three hours. He was groggy, he smelled and he could not believe that all it had taken for his idiotic mother to get back with her husband was forcing her to be in the same room as him. After bringing home a new guy most nights for nearly two months. She was lucky T.J. wasn't the kind to ask questions.

"I can't believe it's time for the Autumn Festival already" Rory said as she looked around the town square.

"I know, time flies so fast" Lane said.

"Oh yes it does. How's your pregnancy going by the way?" Rory said, looking at her tiny little friend and her burgeoning belly.

"Really good, thanks. Zach's been great and the boys are really excited to be getting a sibling" Lane said, rubbing her stomach.

"So am I. Can't wait to meet the little fella"

"Still can't believe it's another boy. I was ready for a girl, I'm greatly outnumbered here" Lane said, pouting a little.

"Just dress him up in skirts and dresses, raise him as a transsexual, it's really in right now" Rory said and for a minute Lane looked at her childhood friend, doubting everything she believed in, before she noticed the mischievous grin on Rory's face and burst out laughing at the joke.

When Lane had to run off to go save Kwan from a goat in the petting zoo Rory went to look around some more and before she knew it she found herself staring straight into familiar dark eyes.

"Jess"

"Rory, hey"

"What are you doing here?" Rory asked.

"Could ask the same of you?" Jess said back, surprised to see her there.

"I just needed to get a break from the city life for a bit" Rory said, her smile fading a little.

"Ah" Jess said and reached back and scratched his head, a bit awkward.

"So, what about you, why are you here? Can't be that you were that excited for the Autumn Festival?" Rory asked teasingly, knowing Jess's despise for these things.

"No, definitely not. Luke called, said I had to bring Liz back, it was now or never for them, so I did."

"…and?! What happened, are they back together?" Rory asked eagerly.

"Yep. I barely had a chance to escape with Doula before they re-consummated their marriage right there in front of us"

"Ew. So did not need to know that" Rory said, a disgusted look on her face.

"Well someone else had to share the mental image" Jess said, grinning. "Are you hungry? I was just coming out here to peruse the food stalls"

"Yes, starving" Rory said and followed Jess over to the corn dog stand.

"So, you here alone or am I finally getting to see that mysterious boyfriend of yours" Jess said, mouth full of processed meat.

"We broke up" Rory said simply.

Jess didn't even think for a second as he grabbed her face and pressed his lips down on hers.

Rory was shocked at the move at first, but she didn't pull back, but didn't do anything to deepen the kiss either.

Jess reluctantly moved back and awkwardly looked at the ground before daring to look up at Rory.

"What was that?" Rory asked, surprised.

Jess didn't say anything for a second. "I, uhm, I love you Rory. I always have" he finally burst out.

"Oh" was all Rory could manage, shocked at his revelation.

Jess waited a bit to see if she was going to say anything else. When it became clear she wasn't he simply said "Never mind" and walked away.

 **So, Jess is back in it! I read a story the other day that had both Jess and Logan and when it became clear that Rory was choosing Jess I became really disappointed, ultimately realizing I am definitely Rogan at heart. However, I do really like Jess and I think he was perfect for her at the time. That, combined with the fact I'm rewatching the series (as you do, I mean having it right there on Netflix, what else can you do?) and just got to the third season, inspired me to bring Jess back for a bit. I will probably make her choose Logan in the end, but hopefully I will satisfy some Literati souls out there :)**

 **Remember to review please 3**


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